Larry loves tilapia. I’m not crazy about it, but I love Larry, and any good marriage needs compromise. So I made Blackened Tilapia for dinner. I served it over creamy, jalapeno-cheese grits. I’ll admit, it was good. The mild fish accepted the spicy seasoning like a good friend welcomes an offer for a good glass of wine. And who doesn’t like cheese grits?
But the Blackened Tilapia wasn’t the star of the meal.
What was? Fresh coleslaw. Yes. Coleslaw.
When I was a little girl, I had coleslaw either dressed with mayo or with mustard. (Depending on whatever my mom had in the fridge). As I started experimenting in my kitchen as a teenager, I used both. As a young woman, I picked at it in restaurants (it gave me gas) and then hired others to make it for me in my restaurant. Skip to today at (gasp) middle age and I grow my own.
I harvested my first (ever) head of cabbage from my community garden plot. What makes this event so special? Well, for starters, I never, repeat, never grew cabbage of any kind. In my world, that’s a big deal.
As easy and delightful as my coleslaw was for that tilapia meal, I wonder why I haven’t made it more often.
I shredded a quarter of the head of cabbage (enough for two servings), 2 small carrots, 1 green onion, 1/4 cup of Agave Nectar, sea salt and white pepper to taste, a dash of dry mustard, white vinegar and EVOO. Toss all ingredients, cover and refrigerate for thirty minutes.
Now there are countless variations for this simple salad and I’ll offer a few. In fact, coleslaw can be the Star of your meal, too.
- Slivers of fresh red pepper (or any pepper)
- Chunks of avocado
- Shredded fresh ginger
- Slices of mango
- Shredded pineapple
The options are limitless. What’s your favorite coleslaw recipe? Do you like mayo, mustard or vinaigrette dressing?
